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Infancy - Trust vs. Mistrust
Tom was welcomed to the world by a young mother who struggled to provide. She brought her precious baby boy to a nearby orphanage and wished the best for her child. While Tom's physical needs were always met, the orphanage had little staff in comparison to the number of children. Tom was often left to cry for long periods of time. In the midst of the developmental challenge of trust vs. mistrust, Tom was deprived connection with a caregiver leading to severe relational issues later in his life. -
Young Adulthood - Intimacy vs. Isolation
At the age of 25, Tom celebrates as he exchanges vows with a woman who he believes is the love of his life. They celebrate with glee and begin the enormous task of officially blending their lives together. While they have both just recently discovered their own identities, they are excited to see the versions of themselves they will begin to grow into, together. During the developmental phase of isolation vs. intimacy, they have found each other and chosen to pursue intimacy together. -
Middle Adulthood - Generativity vs Stagnation
At the age of 50 years old, Tom finds himself extremely depressed. His wife was tragically taken from him 5 years ago by a slow but painfully progressive disease. Although she always dreamed of having children, he never viewed raising a family as a part of his plan, denying her this desire. They adopted animals throughout their years but never started a family of their own. After all these years of focusing on himself instead of enriching a future generation, Tom feels stagnant and depressed.
